Chinese woman dies after four abortions in a year trying for boy

HONG KONG — A woman from eastern China has died after having four abortions in a year because her husband wanted her baby to be a boy, according to a newspaper report.

The husband divorced the woman after she fell ill through terminating her pregnancies, the Jianghuai Morning News reported.

The woman gave birth to a girl four years ago, but her husband insisted their second child be a boy.

Repeated abortions destroyed the health of the woman, according to the article, without giving details of her illnesses.

The woman, whose full name was not given and who came from a county near Wuhu in Anhui province, found out the sex of her unborn children through X-rays.

Traditional Chinese culture favours boys over girls, but it is illegal in China for doctors to tell mothers the sex of their unborn child in case they terminate the pregnancy. Unlicensed medical practitioners operate illegally to inform women of their fetus’ sex.

The woman and her husband had decided to have a second baby after the scrapping of the one-child policy.

After the couple divorced, she sought treatment in hospital for her illnesses with the 17,000 yuan (S$3,440) she received as part of the settlement, but she later died.

Her former husband did not visit her in hospital and is now planning to marry another woman, according to the report. SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST